Gold fällt unter 4500! Aktien, Anleihen und Gold alle im Minus – ist Bargeld wirklich der beste Schutz?

Gold fell below $4,500 on Friday, triggering intense volatility and re-pricing in global capital markets since the military actions against Iran by Israel and the U.S. began in late February 2026. Faced with concerns over potential energy supply disruptions and inflation rebound due to the war, investors quickly adjusted their asset allocations. Recent data shows that traditional safe-haven assets like gold and U.S. Treasuries performed weakly during this crisis, while the S&P 500 also faced valuation downgrades. Meanwhile, the size of U.S. money market funds hit a record high, indicating a large-scale shift of funds into highly liquid assets. Is the market now entering a defensive phase where “cash is king”?

S&P 500 drops 5%, risk assets face test

After the outbreak of Middle East conflict, the S&P 500 significantly came under pressure amid geopolitical turmoil. Rising oil prices increased corporate operating costs and rekindled fears of stagflation. With the Federal Reserve maintaining high interest rates, risk appetite for assets cooled markedly. High rates combined with war uncertainties weakened stock valuations, prompting institutional investors to adopt defensive reductions, leading to phased outflows from the stock market. Since the war began, the S&P 500 has fallen over 5%.

Gold’s safe-haven aura dims, down 14% since the conflict

Since late February, when the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran, gold briefly rose from $5,230 to over $5,500, but then declined, closing at $4,492 before press time, a drop of up to 14%. Rising oil prices fueled inflation concerns, while stronger U.S. Treasury yields and the dollar were main factors in gold’s decline. Additionally, amid broad asset declines, investors sold gold to offset losses elsewhere, leading to outflows from gold ETFs.

(Weekly gold price down 8%, could gold continue to fall amid Russia-Ukraine war?)

U.S. Treasury yields rise, bond prices face correction

U.S. Treasuries, traditionally viewed as safe assets, also could not escape this time. Due to inflation fears, the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield surged from 3.95% to 4.386%, an increase of 11%. Since bond yields move inversely to prices, rising yields indicate a substantial decline in bond prices. This suggests that, with inflation risks unresolved, the duration risk of long-term Treasuries has increased significantly, challenging strategies that rely solely on Treasuries for geopolitical risk hedging.

Cash is king? Funds flow into money market funds

Asset volatility has driven capital into highly liquid money market funds. According to Crane Data LLC, the size of U.S. money market funds recently soared to a record $8.276 trillion, an increase of $36 billion since late February.

With the Fed holding interest rates steady, money market funds offer low volatility, capital preservation, and high liquidity, making them attractive as “cash-like” assets. This data highlights that, when gold and Treasuries underperform, market funds indeed show a defensive shift towards “cash is king.”

Bitcoin diverges, digital assets still risky

After the outbreak of war, Bitcoin briefly dropped from $68,000 to $63,000, but has now recovered to around $70,000, representing nearly a 4% increase. Has Bitcoin become a safe-haven asset in this conflict?

In fact, since a sharp decline last October, Bitcoin is still down nearly 20% this year. If the war continues to escalate, all assets may struggle to avoid declines.

This article “Gold drops below 4500! Stocks, bonds, and gold all suffer—Is cash the ultimate safe haven?” first appeared on Chain News ABMedia.